Long time no update, hope it brings you a little bit of happiness in a terrible time.
Please contact your representatives to call for a ceasefire.
Free Palestine.
Cease Fire Today.
"Alright you three, you're thirteen now and you'll be graduating soon," Mikoto says.
"Finally!" Hana and I say. Itachi nods between us at the kitchen table.
"Which also means you'll be going on missions outside of the village soon," Mikoto continues. "I know you three can water walk, but you also need to learn how to swim."
"Oh no," I say as I hide my face in my arms.
"It'll be fine, Kanna-chan. We'll be with you," Mikoto runs a hand through my hair. "Besides, I found you three the cutest swimsuits-"
This is not going to end well.
"Easy, Kanna-chan," a voice says. I don't know who it is. But I recognize the chakra. The warmth. The warmth that pulled me out of the waves-
"Kanna-hime," the voice says again. I force my eyes open. "Match my breathing, hime." The voice says as I'm surrounded by warmth.
I can't find my voice. My chest is tight. Black dots spot my vision as I finally force myself to look up.
"You are in Konoha. You are safe." Uchiha Fugaku looks down at me with worried eyes. They're bright red, with black marks swirling inside of them. It's the first time I remember looking straight into an activated sharingan.
And then I'm falling.
Instead of sitting on the side of the stream where Itachi's mom was teaching us how to swim, I'm in a room with gray walls, floors, and a gray ceiling.
There's nothing in the room except the bright white lights on the ceiling above me.
I'm freezing.
Something squeaks behind me, and when I turn around, I see a shadow.
"What are you-" I can't finish my sentence. His bandages fall to the floor from his arm.
It's covered in eyes. Bright red eyes with different black markings inside of them.
I see him for a second before everything changes again and I'm in the jonin commander's office.
I've never been inside of the room itself before, only in the hallway outside of it while waiting to meet with the elders.
But the jonin commander looks down at me, his dark brown eyes show no remorse, and I can feel the anger in his chakra. His wife stands beside him, hands on her hips and her hair seems to fly behind her.
"You were told not to inform others that you were made with our DNA," the jonin commander says. I turn around, but no one's behind me.
"Me? I didn't know-" I rush to try to defend myself, but it doesn't work.
"You knew," the jonin commander's wife cuts in and I feel my throat start to close up. "We told the council that we don't have the time to waste on a failed experiment," I flinch at the words.
"I swear I didn't-"
"We tried to allow you to stay in the village. But if others found out that you are related to us, we would have to assign guards to you. It would put too much of a strain on the village," the jonin commander cuts me off. He doesn't sound angry. Just clinical. Like the doctor's in the hospital when they give me my check ups.
I don't know what's worse.
But my eyes burn.
I knew that they told the council they didn't want me.
But I didn't know they hated me.
"We'll be removing your citizenship." My body starts to shake. "You are to remain in the Land of Fire, but you are not to pursue the shinobi arts."
"Please, I didn't tell anyone, I can use a henge seal-"
A kunai is held against my throat.
And then I'm falling again.
The same thing happens more times than I can count.
Every time I try to defend myself, try to reason with them, it ends with a kunai to my throat.
Sometimes I look up and see Shiki. Others it's Inori. The worst times are when it's the jonin commander or my mo- the jonin commander's wife.
"Please stop," I finally beg before they can start speaking again.
I fall again.
All I can hear is a steady beeping noise and the sound of someone breathing.
"You're awake," a quiet voice says.
"Konoha?" I croak.
"You're in Konoha, Kanna-chan," Fugaku says. I don't open my eyes as he sits down beside me. "You've been out for three days."
"Out?"
"Mikoto said that you went under that water during your swim practice," he says as he starts to run a hand through my hair. "When I got there you were hyperventilating. When you finally opened your eyes, you started to have a seizure."
"A seizure?"
"They couldn't find anything wrong physically," he says carefully. "Yamanaka Inori said it could be your past trauma coming up."
"I can hear the 'but' ojisan." I feel a straw hit my lips after my voice cracks. I take a slow sip of water before I finally open my eyes.
"But he did say that you seemed to be suffering the effects of Tsukuyomi."
"Tsukuyomi?" I ask as I look up at him. He doesn't look back at me. Had the jonin commander and his wife talked to him? Would he stay with me until they sent me away?
"It is one of the most powerful genjutsu in existence. The user can force you to see whatever they wish, be that good or bad."
It was a genjutsu?
I blink up at Fugaku.
In the memories, he didn't talk the way a Nara normally talks.
It was a genjutsu.
It was only a genjutsu.
"It was bad."
"Kanna-chan, that genjutsu can only be cast with the sharingan."
"Is that why people are outside?" I can only feel a few signatures. Inori is there, along with Shiki.
My throat starts to close when I feel the Hokage.
"Easy, hime," Fugaku says as he finally looks down at me.
"You haven't slept," I say as I reach my hand out for his face.
"I am a shinobi, don't worry about me."
"I'll always worry about you," I say as he finally sits back down beside me. He sighs as he holds my hand in his own. "Do they think you did this?"
"Some do," he nods.
"You didn't," I say as I shake my head. "You saved me. Again."
"You say that like it's a bad thing," he says and I look up at the ceiling. I feel myself start to shake again.
"Everything is jumbled," I finally say after a stretch of silence.
"Start with what's easiest."
"None of it is," my breath catches before I force myself to take in a deep breath like Fugaku had taught me to do when I feel anxious. "Did I have a meeting with the jonin commander?" I hate how little my voice sounds.
"No," Fugaku sounds confused. "We brought you to the hospital from the side of the stream." I nod my head slowly.
"So that-that was the Tsukuyomi, then."
"Do you want to-"
"No!"
"Okay, okay," Fugaku shushes me. "You don't have to talk about what happened inside of the genjutsu, yet."
"Yet," I mumble and he sighs. "I think it was a memory, I think that it happened in his lab."
"Orochimaru's?" Fugaku asks and I tilt my head to look at him.
"Yes, but-but it wasn't him," my voice starts to shake. "It was like the other memories, the same place, but it wasn't him in the r-room."
"Who was it?" Fugaku's brow furrows and my heart starts to beat faster. I can feel it in my chest and hear it on the monitor. Fugaku looks up at it, worried.
"I don't know," I shake my head. "But their arm, it-it was covered in eyes," my voice cracks on the last word. Fugaku's eyes cut back to me, widening slightly.
"That's enough for today," a kind voice says. I look up to see the Hokage stepping into the room. "We won't force you into a mind-walk, Kanna-chan. We believe you." My entire body sags in relief. The beeping noises start to slow down.
"We'll have a quick meeting outside and then Fugaku can come back in, does that sound alright to you?" I nod my head slowly.
"I need a nap."
Fugaku shakes his head, A fond smile on his face. But his eyes are still sharp.
I hear the door close before the room turns black.
"How are you feeling?" Itachi asks as soon as I'm off the last step.
"I'm okay, Itachi," I say as I step forward and hug him. He hums quietly as he holds me for a second.
"Tell me when you're not."
"I will." I feel him nod against the top of my head before we pull away. He's been very overprotective since our failed swimming lesson a few weeks ago.
"You better," he says as he pulls on my sleeve. We walk in silence towards Hana's house in relative silence.
"There you are, lazy!" Hana says as she runs up to us, the Haimaru brothers trailing behind her. She pulls me into a hug. I give the dogs treats with one hand while I hug Hana back with my other arm.
"You say that like I'm not here to pick you up every morning."
"It's our last day in the academy! We graduate today!"
"I know, I know," I say as she starts rocking back and forth, pulling me with her.
"You should be excited!"
"I know," I rub the back of my head when she pulls away.
"Bad feeling?" Itachi asks as Hana hugs him.
"Kind of?"
Itachi and Hana look at eachother, having a silent conversation.
"That's not fair."
"Oh quit pouting," Hana says as they pull away from their hug.
"I'm not-"
One of the Haimaru brothers barks, cutting me off. Hana and Itachi laugh before pulling me to walk between them the rest of the way.
My heart plummets when I hear the last of the team assignments. Hana, Itachi, and Izumi are on a team together. I wasn't expecting to be put on a team with Hana and Itachi. As much as I would've loved to be put on a team with them, I knew it wouldn't happen for me.
But I thought I'd at least get put on a team.
I look between Hana and Itachi, maybe I had zoned out at some point? But they look as confused as I am.
"Because of a younger student graduating, you will not be placed on a team from this class, Kanna," our sensei says. I feel like I'm going to be sick. Hana moves in her seat, there's no doubt in my mind that she's going to try to say something or hurt our sensei, but I put a hand on her arm.
"You will have an alternative assignment," our sensei finally says when he's sure Hana isn't going to jump out of her seat to try to attack him.
"An alternative assignment?" I ask, and the sensei nods.
"You will be placed on a team with two others from another class. Your sensei will pick you up soon."
The test was a blur. It didn't go well.
I managed to get a bell, the others didn't.
"You fail," Sarutobi sensei, one of the branch members of the Sarutobi clan, had told me. It plays over and over in my mind.
Would Fugaku and Tsume be disappointed? I got the bell, I thought that was the point of the test.
I take a few shaky breaths before I stand up in the clearing.
"Sarutobi-san!" I call out after a second. He turns back around, watching me carefully. "Where do I go to sign up for the genin corps?"
"Genin office is on the second floor of the Hokage Tower," he says with a polite wave but furrowed brow. He and the two other kids walk the other direction. Off to get their first lunch together as a team until a third member of the corps is added. I take a shaky breath as I watch them leave and force myself not to cry.
Everyone who's been to the academy knows that the genin corps is the least liked position to be in. You're at the bottom of the system, just above academy students.
But you're also the last line of defense in the village if it's under attack. You're the ones responsible for helping evacuate the village if something happens. I still remember the kind man who helped us into the evacuation shelter when I was only six.
I'll become the strongest shinobi I can be. And I'll stay in the genin corps no matter how strong I get. I'm used to being underestimated, I can deal with that. It will be another advantage in a fight.
I can do this.
I will do this.
I take my first step towards the Hokage Tower.
The office is larger than I thought it would be. There's multiple desks in the room, one is obviously the first desk to visit as it sits right in front of the door. There's another door at the back of the room that's open. Inside is a man looking through files.
"Hey there, haven't seen you before," a voice says. I look to see a teen with long purple hair. "What are you looking for?"
"Hi, I, uh, came to sign up for the genin corps?"
"What?" The teen blinks at me.
"I came to sign up for the genin corps?" I squeak this time. "Is this the right place, the jonin who ran our test said it would be here-"
"No, no you're in the right place!" The girl waves her hands. "The paperwork normally takes a few days to get distributed after jonin tests, do you have yours?"
"Paperwork? No," I shake my head. "The jonin who gave us our test said I could go back to the academy for a year or I could sign up for the genin corps."
"You came here instead of going back to the academy?" The girl asks, loudly. I feel multiple sets of eyes on me and my cheeks start to burn. I feel a larger chakra signature start moving towards us and feel even more nervous.
"Yeah," I say as I fiddle with a loose thread on my sweatshirt. "Do I need to wait for paperwork?"
"No," a man says. I look up to see the same man who was in the office a few minutes earlier. His red hair is tied back in a spiky ponytail and a scar runs down the left side of his face.
"Commander-sama!" The girl in front of me says.
"How many times do I need to tell you, you don't need to be so formal, Misa-chan," the man says. His voice is warm, just like his chakra.
"Sorry," the girl says sheepishly. He waves his hand before turning to me.
"What's your name?"
"Kanna," I say.
"Well, that makes sense," he smiles as he looks at me. I look up at him, obviously confused. "I remember seeing your file, I can get your paperwork started," he turns and starts walking back to his office. Misa motions with her hands to follow him and I move quickly to catch up.
He holds the door to the office open for me and motions for me to sit in the chair in front of the desk in the center of it. As I drop my bag on the floor and sit in the chair, I take in the rest of the room. Bookshelves line the walls on either side of the room, and a large window lines the wall behind his desk. I hear the door click shut as he walks around me to sit behind his desk.
He shuffles through his files before he finally pulls a smaller one out. I see my name written on it before he starts flipping through it.
"So you're a genjutsu type?" He asks. I snort before I can stop myself. I throw my hand over my mouth quickly.
"Sorry, Commander-sama," I say. His lips twitch into another smile as he shakes his head.
"Just call me Masashi, and judging by your reaction, you're not a genjutsu type?"
"I can't do a genjutsu to save my life."
"That bad?" He raises an eyebrow. I'm tempted to try to lie, but I probably shouldn't lie to the commander of my hopefully soon-to-be rank.
"That bad," I nod.
"Alright," he says as he pulls out a pen and ink. "What are you good at other than pranks?"
I freeze at his question.
"Pranks?"
"Don't worry, you never got caught," he winks at me. "Just don't pull any on me and we're even."
"Okay," I squeak. No one caught me doing pranks the entire time I was in the academy! How did he know? "Um, I'm good with traps and strategy."
"Anything else?"
"I'm decent in taijutsu?"
"You're not going to mention fuinjutsu?"
"I'm not that great-"
"You're better than most of the village, you can already make your own exploding seals and barrier seals," he cuts me off.
"How do you know all of this?"
"You are the first person to grab a booklet about the genin corps before their graduation from the academy," he says as he looks back up at me from my file. "I decided to see what you were capable of in the event you joined the corps."
"But I didn't feel you-"
"Feel me?"
"Yeah, your chakra feels warm, I haven't felt it before today." His eyebrows raise as he turns back to my file.
"They didn't write down that you're a sensor."
"I didn't know that's what this was until a few weeks ago. I thought everyone felt chakra like this, ya know?"
"You don't know what a sensor type is?"
"They didn't cover it in the academy, I swear!" I say as I shake my hands in front of me. "And my friends are all from clans so they learn it super young. I was there literally every day and took so many notes you know!"
He just blinks at me.
I cover my mouth and lower my head to try to stop my giggles but I can't help it. I burst out laughing.
"And what's so funny?" The commander rumbles. But his chakra hums with amusement. He's not angry with me.
"I-I've never seen a j-jonin be sho-cked," I struggle to say and he snorts.
"You were supposed to be terrified of me just then, you know," he says as I wipe the tears that fell from my eyes.
"You really need to work on being scary, you know."
The corner of his lip quirks up.
"You're going to be a real pain in the ass, huh kid?" My chest grows tight. I was just making fun of the genin commander and I wasn't even a genin at this point. He can make it so I can't get into the corps, I won't be able to afford a place to live, the orphanage kicked me out this morning-
"I needed a replacement for when I eventually retire."
"What the fuck?"
He throws his head back and laughs.
"Welcome to the corps," he finally says after he calms down. "We'll work on your paperwork tomorrow, Shikaku isn't going to believe this." My throat closes but I force my face to remain neutral.
It makes sense that the different commanders would be in contact with each other. If the Hokage, Shiki, and Inori couldn't see the resemblance between me and Shikaku, I'm sure Masashi wouldn't, either.
"Thank you, Masashi," I bow my head slightly, my short brown hair falling around the sides of my face.
"You won't be thanking me for long," he smirks and I sigh as I lean back in my seat.
This is going to be such a drag.